Summer Isles
by luxyray
Summary: Misty has become an unbeatable gym leader and challengers are hard to come by. She's bored with her routine and wants a challenge. What comes along is Gary's new summer competition on the islands surrounding Sayda. Misty takes her place as Gary's leader on the water isle and finds what she's been looking for - something to challenge her, only it wasn't just the battles.
1. Prologue

**Summer Isles**

_Prologue_

**Sayda Island Lab**

Gary let out a sigh of relief as he finally let his fingers rest. He saved the document he had been working on and closed his laptop. _That was enough for today_, he would edit it another time. His eyes needed a rest from the screen, and he thought '_if I see the word fossil one more time, I swear I'll hit something_.' Having only his fossils, papers and equipment in the lab surrounding him, it wasn't an action he wanted to take. Gary glanced at the clock and saw he still had a couple of hours of daylight left to play with. '_I need some air,_' he thought as he stood up and headed out of the lab.

Gary made his way to his room to get changed out of his work clothes. On the way he saw Dora supervising Crystal in the kitchen. As he swept past, he managed to tell Dora that he was heading outside for the rest of the afternoon. Gary took off his lab coat, and changed into a loose pair of cargo pants and a black top. '_What do I actually want to do?_' He thought as he peered out the window. Gary spotted his Blastoise in the waves of the beach nearby; he could not see Umbreon, but guessed that he was somewhere in the shade of the forest. He grabbed their empty _Pokeballs_, determined to spend the afternoon having fun with his Pokémon.

Gary had not spent much time battling with them since he had returned to Sayda Island from the Sinnoh region, but he did make time for his Pokémon when he could. Here on Sayda he was able to bring over the Pokémon he had previously kept at his grandpa's corral. He and his grandpa now transferred Pokémon back and forth depending on what ones were needed for their research, although his beloved starter Blastoise and loyal companion Umbreon were always with him.

Dora caught up to him on the way out. "The swell off to the east would be perfect for surfing if you're going out with Blastoise" she said, spotting the _Pokeballs_ about his waist.

Gary looked at his _Pokeballs_, "Hmm, surfing. That does sound like a good way to wind down. Also, I think I've finished that report on fossil resurrection. If you're free later this week it'd be great if you could go over it with me, although I'll still make sure gramps reads it before I submit it."

"Of course I'll go over it with you, it's like my little baby".

"HEY!" Cried Crystal, "Who was it that found the fossil and the _old amber_?"

Gary and Dora shared a knowing glance, this was typical Crystal behaviour. Gary tilted his head slightly to Dora, and then knelt down to talk to Crystal. "We know you're the one that found Aerodactyl, and we know that we couldn't have started the project without you," Gary said, trying to suck up to the younger girl. "But you have to admit that when Dora and I went off to search for other fossils it had nothing to do with you, right? And we did all of the research? Aerodactyl is your baby, but the project is ours."

Crystal's shoulders visibly sagged, and Gary cringed, _had he been too harsh? Too condescending?_ Crystal had matured over the years, but he knew she was still a child at heart. "I know, I know, Just making sure my sister doesn't forget me, especially if she's gonna become real famous, and start worrying about other people being on the island, not just me."

"Right. Well Crystal, Dora, I'm off to soak up what's left of the sun with a surf. I'll be taking Umbreon with me, but can you make sure to feed my other Pokémon when the time comes? You know once we're out we never know how long we're going to be."

"Sure thing Gary, I'll also get Crystal to set you aside some dinner if you think you're gonna be out that late."

"I'd love her" Gary called out to Dora, as he turned towards the exit.

"Stop talking like I'm not here!" Crystal pouted.

"I'd love it if you could save me some dinner Crystal." Gary said to the disgruntled teenager. Crystal blushed following Gary's statement, but seemed to cheer up quickly.

"I'll save you some."

"Great, I'll see you girls later!" Gary proclaimed, ruffling up Crystal's hair before making his way outside.

Gary really did care greatly for the two girls that he had shared this island with for the past few years. Dora had been part of a larger research group when Gary had joined the Sayda lab, and at that time Gary had felt like an outcast, despite leading the work in restoring an Aerodactyl fossil. Feeling lonely he had jumped at the chance to do some fieldwork with Professor Rowan in Sinnoh. As he had travelled around Sinnoh, studying the legends of the _Lake Guardians _he had come across more fossils, with the help of Roark and Byron. He had returned with these fossils to Sayda in the hope of resurrecting them, only to find the island nearly deserted.

All of the researchers had left after the Aerodactyl drama, leaving Dora and Crystal alone on the island. Dora had been ecstatic to begin resurrecting more fossils and left to find more in other regions, leaving Gary to look after Crystal. Crystal was like a child to him, so naive, and seemed to have an only child syndrome, despite living with her older sister. Dora was definitely Crystal's mother figure, she constantly reminded Gary of Mrs. K, who had been like a foster mother to him growing up. He wanted to feel like they were family, but Ash had been like his family, and everyone knew how that had ended up.

Gary's musings had carried him away from the house and towards the looming forest. Through the dark canopy of trees Gary could see his Umbreon lazing in the shade of the many trees, lit up by his golden rings.

"Umbreon!" Gary called out. He saw his _dark_ Pokémon's ears perk up and saunter out of the shadows. "How do you fancy a ride out on Blastoise?"

"Umbreo!" His Pokémon cooed happily. Gary patted his glossy coat as they headed for the beach where his Blastoise was teasing some of the local Magikarp. "Blastoise quit teasing, soon they'll be Gyarados and won't be afraid to attack you back."

"Blas, Blastoise!" His Pokémon tried to reason with him. Gary shook his head, laughing softly and pointed off to the far horizon. "I was planning on surfing out there with you, but if you'd rather play here with the Magikarp I guess Umbreon and I will have to find something else to do." Gary started to turn around with Umbreon following his lead.

"Blastoise!" Gary laughed and jumped onto his now prone Blastoise.

"I knew you'd come around! Now, Dora said over to the east there's some big swells, lets have some fun!" Gary called out. Blastoise waited for Umbreon to join their master on his shell before powering away from the island. Blastoise quickly made it over to where Gary had said the swells were. They rested, floating up and down the large waves as they rolled through the ocean. Gary smiled to himself as he rested up in a nook of Blastoise's shell with Umbreon curled into him. He was enjoying the sun, it was getting into spring now; the days were getting longer and the sun warmer. It was late into the afternoon and night would be creeping up any moment, but out here in the waves and the sun it was hard to believe. Disturbing Umbreon, Gary peeled off his shirt and shoes; placing them in a pouch around Blastoise's neck, ready to jump into the glistening waves.

He dove in, relishing the feel of the cool water on his bronzed body after being stuck in the stuffy lab. Blastoise swam in circles around him casting _bubblebeam_ while Umbreon sat on his shell popping the bubbles with _shadow ball_. The mist created by this combination soon caused Gary's elegant Umbreon to slip off of Blastoise's shell and into the ocean. "Umb, Umb, Umb" he called out, unleashing _hidden power_ into the water, clearly hoping to be able to lift himself back out with the attack. "Calm down Umbreon" Gary called, swimming over to try and soothe the distressed Pokémon, "Anyone would think you were a Meowth the way you're acting". With the aid of Blastoise swimming over to help keep Gary afloat, he was able to pet Umbreon, soothing him, and then help him make his way back onto Blastoise's shell.

"I guess you aren't swimming Umbreon? But Blastoise and I know other ways to have fun!"

"TOISE" His Pokémon shouted excitedly, he seemed to know what was coming. Gary climbed up on Blastoise's shell and encouraged Umbreon to come towards him. Holding onto Umbreon very tightly, Gary commanded Blastoise.

"_Hydropump_!" Blastoise responded with an explosive jet of water that lifted them out of the surf. "_Rapid spin_!" Again Blastoise responded accordingly, spinning around very quickly. "_Fly_!" Was Gary's final call. Blastoise adjusted his _hydropump_, and using his _rapid spin _was able to move himself and his companions through the air. Gary could tell Umbreon was terrified, but also enjoying the experience. Gary had spent ages teaching his Blastoise this particular combination, it had given him something to do with Blastoise while no longer battling. Gary would love to see the looks on people's faces if they could see him 'flying' on Blastoise.

Gary enjoyed the feeling of the wind in his hair, sure he could have used one of his _flying_ Pokémon, but it wasn't the same as doing it with his trusty companion. There was also something a little more rewarding about flying above the ocean on a _water_ Pokémon, when they were so much more adapted to surfing the waves. Gary looked around himself some more, behind them in the distance he could see the mass of Sayda rapidly getting smaller as they blasted away from it. Ahead, sneaking up on them, he could see some rocks amongst the crashing waves.

"Blastoise, try land near those rocks!" Gary called out. He knew that flying like this tired out Blastoise, and he did not want a crash landing. "Blastoise!" His Pokémon agreed, and the trio stopped spinning as Blastoise let only his _hydropump_ guide them down to meet the waves. Soon, they had hit the water, and Blastoise surfed towards the rocks.

As they neared the rocks, Gary could see that there were not simply a few gathered in the surf; but many, many rocks. Together they almost seemed to create an island. Blastoise drew up to the 'shore' of the rocky island and allowed Gary and Umbreon to clamber off his shell. All three stepped tentatively onto the rocks.

Standing on the island let Gary see just how far the rocks lay. It spread out before them in a crescent shape, easily half the size of Sayda. Gary was aware of the approaching dusk, but his curiosity got the best of him, as he and his Pokémon set out to walk across the rocky landscape. Gary was amazed at the land, it really did seem to just be made up of lots of rocks, and he could see no grass or greenery anywhere around him. In what Gary assumed to be the centre of the island there appeared to be a large cave. Umbreon pranced around the entrance, but Gary did not let him venture in. The last thing Gary wanted was to be stranded out here in a rock slide, when up until now he had never known there to be other islands in the ocean between Sayda and Sinnoh.

Blastoise was happy to continue, unlike his _dark_ friend he didn't find comfort in darkness. He associated the darkness of caves with energy; likely due to their hotspot location for _rock_ Pokémon, against which he found battling a breeze. Continuing across the far side of the island from where they had arrived, Gary noticed more caves, though much smaller than the one his Umbreon had been attracted too. He was sure they could easily house Pokémon, and Gary did not want to have to battle. Sure Blastoise and Umbreon were his strongest, but if there were lots of wild Pokémon here they would not be enough.

"Umbreon, Umbreon!" His Pokémon called from the edge of the island. Gary quickened his pace to catch up, watching his feet so that he didn't trip. As he and Blastoise reached the edge, they saw what Umbreon was excited about. In the distance more islands could be seen. Umbreon was yelping at an island that from what Gary could see seemed to be housed of more rocks, although the island was raised higher than the one they were currently on. His Blastoise however had started crooning for an island to the left of where they stood, which Gary could see at least looked to start from the ocean with a beach.

Gary gave in to his Pokémon, and instructed Blastoise to surf over to the islands. Umbreon moaned, having given into Blastoise as he was their ride, to go over to his island first.

"Toise! Blastoise, Blastoise!"

Gary and Umbreon were unceremoniously thrown from Blastoise's back as he stood to make his way up the beach. Gary could understand the attraction. From the beach he could see grassy knolls, and a river running to the beach. Blastoise gambled up alongside the river, leaving Gary and Umbreon no choice but to follow.

The river was flowing only gently, but as they made their way further along they could see and hear its flow gaining strength. Blastoise stopped at a small spring, seemingly the source of the river. "It's like a _water_ _Pokémon's_ paradise here," Gary stated.

"Blast," Blastoise was not stopping here though. Gary could see him surveying their surroundings. Without warning Blastoise dove into the spring. Gary saw his shadow beneath the light blue water. The spring was deeper than Gary had expected it to be, as soon Blastoise's shadow was hardly noticeable, before it disappeared completely. Gary was not worried about his friend. Blastoise was a _water Pokémon_ after all, he could handle himself in the water. Gary sat down to rest, his mind was reeling from encountering these islands in the middle of the ocean. Umbreon sat down next to him, but remained alert.

The next thing Gary knew, Umbreon was pouncing on him. "REOON!"

"What is it?" Gary asked groggily.

"UMBREON!" His Pokémon shouted more forcefully. It was then that Gary noticed that the sun was setting, bathing him in a soft orange glow. Gary realised that Umbreon's calls must be for Blastoise, who Gary guessed, had yet to return.

Gary came to his senses immediately. Still undressed from his earlier swim, he dove into the spring. Umbreon's worry for his friend shone through as he dove in after Gary. Gary's eyes took time to adjust to the underwater shimmering of the spring. Umbreon was more alert, and had started swimming to a cave he had found near the bottom of the spring. The spring was definitely a lot deeper than first anticipated, and Gary felt his ears pop as he followed Umbreon.

Darkness engulfed Gary, without Umbreon's flash he doubted he would have known where he was going. The Cave they had entered into was wide, his Blastoise would have been able to navigate through it easily. Their cave had turned out to be a tunnel, as further progression had led them to a source of light. Following it, Gary and Umbreon emerged into a pristine lake. In the shallows of the lake they saw Blastoise curled up in his shell.

"Blastoise!"

"UMBREON!"

Blastoise was woken up by the two loud calls. His head and limbs came out from his shell. "Blastoise?"

"Do you know how worried we've been? Do you know how long you've been gone for? Anything could have happened."

"Umbreon!" Umbreon nodded, seeming to affirm and approve of Gary's scolding of the other Pokémon.

"Blastoise." It seemed like an apology.

"Just don't do it again," Gary said to Blastoise. "Now lets head back home before we're doing it in the dark."

Gary called Blastoise over, who obeyed immediately. Umbreon on the other hand looked defiantly up at its trainer. "Breeooon" Umbreon cooed with a soft moan.

"I know you wanted to go to your island, but we don't have time anymore. We'll come out again and we can go to your island first. Okay?"

"Umbreon."

Instead of travelling through the tunnel again, the trio made their way in the general direction they had come from. Gary realised that his clothes were still attached to Blastoise, and was thankful for the waterproof pouch. He could only imagine what scolding he would receive from Dora if he were to arrive back home half dressed. "_What kind of role model are you?_" He could practically hear her shouting. She _was_ like a mother.

After getting dressed, Blastoise allowed Umbreon and Gary to sit on his back. He swam slowly back in the direction of Sayda, going around the rock island they had explored earlier. '_I need to show Gramps this place,_' Gary thought.


	2. Chapter 1: The Secret of the Isles

**Summer Isles **

_Chapter One: The Secret of the Isles_

**Cerulean Gym**

"Corsola, spike cannon!"

"Corrrrr!" The spikes along Corsola's back started to glow a blinding white, they contorted away from her body until they hit the Bulbasaur that Misty was battling against. Bulbasaur collapsed, and it was a few seconds before Daisy called out. "Like, Bulbasaur is unable to battle, Corsola wins. The victory goes to Misty of Cerulean gym."

"That was a great battle. With some more training you'll be able to challenge me again for the Cascade Badge." Misty automatically replied to Daisy's call. "Corsola good work!" After waiting for the trainer who had challenged her to leave the gym, Misty peeled off her jacket and jumped into the pool to play with her beloved Pokémon. "Like, geez Misty, couldn't you have like, gone easy on him?" Daisy questioned.

"He was a first timer, I don't have to!" Misty defended herself. "If you want to give away the badges that much why don't _you _just take on challengers?"

Daisy laughed, "Like Misty you're _so _funny! You know that like, so many more trainers would have badges if _I_ took their challenges."

"I know, I know. Anyways, thank you for being referee. I know it's Violet's day, but I couldn't find her anywhere."

"No worries baby sister, it's like been a while since there was a starter on my day anyway, starters battling you are the best to watch." Daisy teased, "plus I like got to see Corsola battle, you know, we could like so use her in our next show!"

"Sure you can, hey Corsola, sounds like fun right?"

"Corsola!"

"I can use Gyarados too if you want him. He wants something to do since we haven't had any good trainers for a while, he's getting bored." As Misty spoke, she called out for the water dragon, who materialised in a beam of light from it's ball on her jacket. Gyarados did a lap of the pool before coming up under Misty to lift her out of the pool. "Like that would be great. We could do like the biggest water ballet performance ever! I have to go and like tell Violet and Lily. They'll be so excited. Thanks baby sis! Ahh!" Daisy sprang away from her sudden hug with Misty, remembering that she had just been in the pool and was still soaking wet. "No problem Daisy, with hardly any decent trainers coming around these days we need to keep training somehow."

"Yeah, yeah like, we need to think of what to perform." Daisy half mumbled to herself as she exited the arena through the door to their house. Misty dried off and searched her jacket for Pokeballs. "Come on out guys!" She called. Following this, multiple beams of light revealed themselves to be Starmie, Staryu, Politoed, Azumarill, Goldeen, Seadra, her Luvdisc Caserin and- "No Psyduck, you know you can't swim!" Misty dove into the water to save her flailing Pokémon. "Urgh, what am I gonna do with you?"

"Psy?"

Psyduck cocked his head at Misty's question. Misty placed him at the edge of the pool. "Go and get your hoop if you want to swim." She turned back to the rest of her Pokémon, "You ready for a ballet guys? Maybe we can ask Daisy for a battle in it, so that we can get some time in the spotlight. Who knows, maybe there will be some good trainers watching who will want a gym battle?" A cheer sounded from her Pokémon at the thought of more battles.

"Psy-" Psyduck called as he waddled out with an inflatable tube around his middle. "-duck" he finished as he plopped into the pool.

"Have fun guys, 'cause as soon as my sisters come up with a play we'll be training!"

Misty got out and sat at the edge of the pool. She couldn't believe that her gym battles were so boring now that she was looking forward to doing the ballet with her sisters. There was a time when she had hated her sisters for even asking her to take time off from being gym leader, just so that they could use their pool to practice. How times changed. Misty reflected back on everything the gym had gone through since she had returned from travelling with Ash.

When Misty first got back to the gym, it had been deserted. Her sisters had left for their world trip without even waiting for her to get back. Leaving behind a handful of fanboys and an enraged Gyarados. Misty had to battle her fear of the mighty water beast and the Invincible Pokémon Brothers in front of an audience, and, unknown at the time, a PIA official. Luckily she had come off the better trainer, and her gym passed its inspection. After that charade, trainers had flocked to Cerulean to challenge Misty. When her sisters, Daisy, Violet and Lily returned from their trip they had wanted to throw a homecoming ballet. Misty had begrudgingly let them perform, but without letting them use her or any of her Pokémon.

Misty was stubborn, she did not want to be stuck in Cerulean being a gym leader; she wanted to be a _water_ Pokémon master. It had taken her a few months to realise that being the gym leader was actually helping her with that. Multitudes of trainers had helped her to become a strong gym leader, with fierce Pokémon - Misty realised she had found her place in the world, for now. As gym leader she was able to use her water Pokémon to battle many different types on a regular basis, how many other people had that opportunity? Misty had even seen some old friends she had met while she was travelling, all visiting in the hopes of winning a badge off of her.

Having realised that she had lost herself in reverie, Misty shook her legs in the water before pulling them out of the pool. Misty massaged her feet a bit to ensure she wouldn't trip when she got up. She recalled her Pokémon into their _'balls_, released them to the aquarium, and threw in some Pokémon food for them to eat. "I'll see you again tomorrow when we start practicing for the ballet. So make sure you rest up okay!" Misty called to her feasting Pokémon before turning around and making her way to the kitchen for some dinner of her own.

Misty entered the kitchen to find all three of her sisters already eating, heads together and chatting animatedly between mouthfuls. "Thanks for letting me know dinner was ready Lily," Misty said dejectedly.

"Misty, like don't be like that. Daisy told me you were playing in the pool and I didn't want to like interrupt. Especially now that you're going to perform with us!" Misty couldn't stay mad at her sister having heard her reasoning.

"Oh, thanks I guess then. Have you come up with a story yet?" Misty asked, genuinely curious about the performance. It would be the first time she had performed with her sisters in years.

"We were thinking of doing a love story," Lily started.

"Aren't they all?" Misty asked.

"With your Caserin and my Luverin!" Daisy continued, ignoring Misty's interruption.

"Yeah, and like Caserin and Luverin will act like when you guys first got them, with Caserin wanting Luverin, but she like, ignores him." Violet added.

"...And in the end they fall in love and live happily ever after right?" Misty hypothesised.

"Of course! But like, the twist is that Caserin's and Luverin's trainers love the opposite way. Daisy will be like in love with you Misty, and you'll have like no idea!" Lily told Misty the plot.

"Then in the end, after saving the two beautiful mermaid princesses from a raging Gyarados by like working together, everyone loves each other in the end!" Daisy finished clasping her hands together under her chin. Both Lily and Violet squealed in excitement.

Misty smiled at her sisters' enthusiasm. She was excited too; she just wasn't sure how to show it. Misty had detested her sisters' shows for so long that she didn't feel like she was entitled to show excitement for it. She was happy to have a bigger role than Violet and Lily, and that she wasn't going to have to spend the whole show pretending to be in love with her sister. Daisy was a much better actress for that role, which her sisters had probably realised, hence the reverse romance of the trainers. Misty also knew her Gyarados would love being the bad guy, and showing off his strength. Just like Caserin would enjoy sharing the main stage with Luverin. Misty enjoyed the rest of the meal time with her sisters planning their show, as well as who they would invite to their grand opening. Misty counted off people in her head to invite: Tracey, Brock, Casey, Sakura and Duplica were musts.

"Right Mist, I'm like going out to the movies with Tracey tonight. So you make sure you get to bed early and like get a good sleep for our first practice tomorrow." Daisy instructed Misty as she got up to leave. Violet started collecting dishes and Lily ran the water in the sink to start washing up. "Sure thing Daisy, say hi to Tracey for me!" Misty replied, heading up to her room. She pulled out a pair of loose fitting shorts and a singlet to take with her to the bathroom for a shower.

* * *

**Umbreon's Island**

"He sure does seem to like it here doesn't he!" Professor Oak pointed out.

'_Like it here is an understatement_' Gary thought. Since they had arrived Umbreon had been dashing around like it was a little Eevee again.

After their last visit to the islands, Gary had called his grandpa immediately upon returning home. Professor Oak had been amazed to hear about the islands Gary had found. Like his grandson, he had thought it was just empty ocean surrounding the island Gary lived on. Professor Oak had come out only two days after receiving Gary's call. Umbreon had been excited about finally getting to go and see his island. He had not been overly friendly to Blastoise since they had returned, seeing as he had got to go to his island, and they had all spent time there while he napped away, not even fully enjoying it.

The island that Umbreon had taken a fancy to was made of rocks, like Gary had first thought. What Gary hadn't counted on, was that the rocks were just a covering. Upon arrival he realised the island housed a very large cave that spanned almost the entire island. The cave lay upon many rocks, stretching from all directions until they met the ocean. The cave was dark, but light had forced its way through somehow, so that visibility was not lost. As Gary ventured deeper into the cave, he could see only in gray scale except for the soft golden glow of Umbreon's rings. Even Blastoise simply looked grey in the distance.

Professor Oak studied the cave while Gary stood and watched over his Pokémon. Gary really didn't know what to make of the mysterious islands he had stumbled upon. His grandfather however, was ecstatic - seeming to mimic his Umbreon, although in a more mature fashion.

"...Sitting here all this time... No wild Pokémon seen ... Two separate islands favoured by two different Pokémon... Type can be taken into account... Amazing... Simply amazing."

Gary could hear his grandfather's scattered words. On one level he understood the excitement, on another he couldn't see why Umbreon was attracted to the cave so much, and Blastoise to the other island.

"Gary, come and see this!" Professor Oak called over. Gary made his way to where he had heard his grandfather's voice, as he could no longer actually see the man. If Gary wasn't mistaken... he wasn't actually in the cave anymore. "Gramps? Where are you?" He asked.

"Just keep heading in the direction of my voice." After his instructions the Professor stayed silent.

"Gramps, are you finally going senile?" Gary teased. "You need to talk at least for me to follow your voice!"

"Hide and seek, in the dark, is multiplied by Umbreon"

"Really gramps, poetry?"

"I thought it seemed fitting given the nature of the cave."

"And what nature would that be?"

"This cave boosts dark power. If one were to battle in here with a _dark_ Pokémon, the _dark_ attacks would be doubly effective. It is quite remarkable, if the other islands you told me about are anything like this, I assume that _water_ Pokémon would be extremely effective over on the island that your Blastoise had a preference for."

Gary had sussed out where his grandfather's voice was coming from. He stepped through a hole in the wall, which on his own he would not have noticed. Through the hole, the cave seemed a lot darker. "What are you doing in here gramps? I can't see anything."

"Hide and seek." The old man replied.

"Umbreon!" His Pokémon called, and then lit up the rings along it's body.

Gary took in the sight around him. '_This place is so cosy._' He thought.

"Umbreon certainly likes it in here!" Had his grandfather heard him? Gary shook his head at the silly thought. Looking towards the source of light in the room, he saw Umbreon lazing out on a large smooth stone. Judging by the size of the stone, Gary guessed that even his Blastoise could have comfortably napped on it, and the room it was in was four times it's size. "Wow, it's almost like at home..." Gary mused. "...the way the lab opens into the kitchen. Spooky!"

"Yes, but this is no kitchen, look at Umbreon, its a place to relax! Can you wait in here with Umbreon, I want to study the cave walls a bit more thoroughly Gary."

Gary sat with Umbreon, this time Blastoise was the impatient one. "Blastoise, you know we're going to your island later right? Just stand still, you had more than enough time at your island the other day anyway!" Gary scolded his grunting Pokémon. Blastoise was just as stubborn as his trainer was, Gary would have been proud if it were at any other moment, but he really did want to know what hold these islands had over his Pokémon. '_If I'd known these islands were here_,' Gary thought, '_I could have brought them over here so many times_. _They could have been so much happier than just camping around on Sayda with me._'

Gary could see how happy just being here had made Umbreon, he had not been so happy since they had last battled, and he hadn't even won the battle. Gary had seen how at ease Blastoise had been too on his favourite island. He had been content without having to resort to teasing Magikarp. If only he hadn't been so caught up in writing his research, they could have discovered these islands so much sooner. Gary wallowed in his thoughts. He knew that his Pokémon had respected his decision to take up research; he also knew that they missed battling. He stroked Umbreon behind his ears, and Umbreon purred with satisfaction. These islands were like a gift to his Pokémon, for lasting with him, and without battles for so long.

Gary wasn't left alone with his thoughts for long. It felt like no time at all had passed, but who could tell when there was no light, when his grandfather came back into the cosy room they were seated in. His grandfather was positively beaming. "Plates and gems Gary! Plenty of them! In nearly every single rock. Embedded in the walls, in the ground, probably in the roof even! They're everywhere! No wonder Umbreon likes it here so much. This cave literally increases his power!"

"Plates? Gems? What are you talking about?"

"This cave seems to be lined with _dread_ _plates_, and when I tried to remove one from the wall, a _dark_ _gem_ was revealed." As he spoke the Professor handed Gary what seemed to be a small black diamond. "Usually these gems and plates are bought by trainers for their Pokémon to increase their attack power, but here in this cave, being surrounded by it, there would be no need for holding them! Absolutely remarkable!"

"Umbreon!" Umbreon now held the _dark_ _gem_ in its mouth.

"Well it's not like its going back in the wall!" Professor Oak joked.

Gary rolled his eyes at his grandfather's antics. "So you think there would be plates on Blastoise's island then?"

"I have no doubt. I'm almost positive that all these islands seem to contain something to draw the Pokémon in. It makes sense for it to be items that raise power. I'm certain that if you had Golem with you he would have been drawn to that rocky island that we passed on the way here." Gary had never even thought to bring his Golem out to these islands with him on this trip, but now that he thought about it, he really should have. It was obvious that Blastoise's island had been a haven for _water Pokémon, _he should have guessed that the rocky island they had crossed over to get there would have been a _rock_ _type _haven.

"I would love to go and study the other islands out here, how many are there?"

"I don't know exactly how many, but there were a few that we could see when we were on the edge of the rock island, when Umbreon and Blastoise could see these ones."

"Looks like we'll have to do some exploring then. See what other islands are out there. I can only imagine that if there were a _dark_ gym leader they would love an arena covered in items that boost their Pokémon's attack power!"

By now, Gary and Professor Oak had exited the cave and were on the boat following Blastoise to his preferred island. "If all these islands actually had these attack items on them, wouldn't they have been mined by now?" Gary questioned his grandfather. Professor Oak thought about it about for a while, "Well Gary, maybe these islands really are being discovered now for the first time. I have no doubt that if they had been discovered earlier there would be none of these plates and especially no gems left around.

By now they had made it up to Blastoise's island. Gary leapt out of the boat and pulled it up onto the sand as an anchor. Blastoise had already galloped up to his lake. Gary followed behind his Pokémon at a slower pace with his grandpa and Umbreon on either side of him. "There's a lake up ahead that Blastoise grew fond of, although as you can see there is also the river, and a spring up ahead as well." Gary told the Professor what he could about the landscape from their last visit to the island. "Although we didn't explore anything, last time we just followed Blastoise."

"Well this time you are here as a researcher! There are many items that can assist _water_ Pokémon, I'm sure there will be a few here on the island."

"Shall we split up then? I can go take a walk around the island, and you can examine the water." Professor Oak nodded to Gary's suggestion and the two researchers went their separate ways, Professor Oak to observe the spring at the river mouth, and Gary to search the other side of the island.

As Gary walked along the beach, circumnavigating the island with Umbreon, he could not help marveling at the size it. The island was not as big as the one that he lived on, as he made his way around he calculated that it was perhaps half the size of Sayda. On the far side of the island Gary came across a few small rock pools. He made his way towards them, sure that there would be some kind of item in them if they were to be found here.

'_I don't even know what I'm supposed to be looking for_,' Gary thought as he started to take off his shoes. He followed this action by rolling the cuff of his black jeans halfway up his calves. He looked to Umbreon's _dark gem_, that he taken from Umbreon on the boat. '_It looks like a diamond, but what if its not the gems that are in the pools? What if it's one of the other items? What else is there? A plate, a gem... gramps said there would be more. I must have come across some of them when I was travelling; items to boost attacks sounds like something I would have come across..._'

Gary waded into the rock pool. '_If I were I diamond where would I hide?_' Gary chanted to himself as he looked into the pool he was currently wading in. '_Under a rock? In the sand?_' Gary shifted some sand in the bottom of the rock pool with his feet. '_Great! Now I can't even see anything, this makes it easier!_' Looking up from the pool, Gary saw Umbreon prancing around the shoreline. Umbreon seemed to be having fun chasing the waves in, and then being chased by the waves back out as they rolled along the sand. As Gary watched, he saw Umbreon dive into one of the waves. "Umbreon!" Gary called out, clambering over the rocks to try and get to his Pokémon.

"Umbree!"

Umbreon reappeared above the waves a short way out to sea. Gary could not believe Umbreon had been swept away so quickly, although he noticed that the waves seemed to be larger on this side of the island, he guessed because they were not broken. The waves from this side really did stretch all the way from Sinnoh. Gary saw that Umbreon was not headed back to shore; he started to wade out into the water after Umbreon. Umbreon disappeared beneath the waves again; Gary felt a hug on his heartstrings '_Umbreon cannot drown._' Gary dove into the water after his Pokémon. Swimming beneath the waves, he felt Umbreon's fur against his face. Gary held onto the body and swam for air.

"Umbree!"

As Gary walked out of the water with Umbreon in his arms he noticed that Umbreon had something in his mouth. "What is this?" He asked.

"Reon."

"You almost drowned for this? Don't do that again, I was so worried!"

His Umbreon bowed his head at Gary's words. Gary noticed Umbreon's sadness, and suddenly felt guilty. '_Umbreon only did it to get this for me, maybe this is an item?_' Gary thought. "Is this what we were looking for Umbreon?" He then asked.

"Bree!" Umbreon nodded his head.

"It just looks like some kind of plant, but we still need to find a gem."

Gary and Umbreon went to look into a different set of rock pools. "See if you can find a gem like you found the seaweed Umbreon!" Gary hoped Umbreon could find it. He had no idea how to find a gem in the rock pools they were in. '_I can find fossils in the earth like _the sun in the sky. _Why can't I find gems as easily?_' Gary waded in the pool kicking up sand as he walked. '_They could be under the sand. Are gems heavier than sand?_'

Gary was knocked off balance as a particularly large wave came through over the rocks filling the pools with fresh seawater. "Bre bre bre!" Umbreon laughed to see Gary now covered in sand from being pushed over by the wave. Gary ignored his Pokémon he just had an epiphany. '_If the waves keep crashing in here, that strong... there could be gems in the rock pool, just all crushed up..._' "Umbreon, do we have anything that we can collect this water in?" Umbreon ran over to Gary's shoes, picked one up in his mouth and ran over to Gary with it.

"What? Umbreon I am not filling my shoe up with water? I was hoping for a bottle or something!"

"Umbreon!"

"You're right, we left all of our gear on the boat." Gary grumbled as he dipped his shoe into the water, making sure to get a sample of sand as well. "If gramps is crediting the discovery of these islands himself, he can buy me a new pair of shoes." Gary grumbled under his breath.

Having collected as much sand and water as would fit into his shoe, Gary and Umbreon left the rock pools. Gary carried both shoes and the sea plant carefully in his hands, as he continued walking around the island with Umbreon. "Hopefully gramps will be happy Umbreon, assuming that there actually is a gem in this shoe somewhere. Otherwise he'll just wonder why I ruined it. At least he should be happy with your find!"

"Umbreo!"

"Could you imagine battling again Umbreon? Think how good you would be with all those items making you feel better!"

"Reooonnn," Umbreon growled menacingly.

"Umbreon, come on! I didn't mean you were bad. I know you could win any battle easily. But you would be super powered battling in that cave!"

Gary and Umbreon came upon a lagoon around the island, near where they had started. "Hey Umbreon, does that look like another one of these plants?" Gary asked, pointing to a similar plant floating near the shore of the lagoon. Umbreon ran to the edge of it and started sniffing. "Umbre!" It cooed happily. Umbreon scooped up the plant with its mouth and ran back to Gary. Gary noticed that the plant Umbreon had just given him was slightly different to the one he was already carrying. He would have thought more of it, but he heard his name being called out by his grandfather.

"What's up gramps?"

"What took you so long, I've been waiting here for half an hour!"

"Well I had trouble finding a gem, but I think I found three items!" Gary said holding out the two plants, as well as his shoe.

"That's great, I can look at them back at the lab, but first I wanted to go check out the other islands. Did you want to come too or head back home? When I get back I can edit your report before you head up to the Indigo Plateau."

"I might go back then. Have a look over my report for any last minute mistakes I notice, and I could get a start on looking at some of these!" Gary again indicated the plants he held in his hand. '_And see if there actually are any gem remnants in here,_' he thought to himself as he looked at his ruined shoe.

"That would be great, I'll take the boat, and you can head back on Blastoise! I'll be back as soon as I can!"

As Gary surfed back home on Blastoise he couldn't help but notice how fast he was moving. '_Must be all the water items I have with me,_' Gary thought. '_I really do wonder how battles would go on the island. Maybe when I'm up at the Plateau I can ask about hosting battles here...'_

* * *

**Cerulean Gym**

Misty smiled and waved along with her sisters to the cheering crowd. The pool was raised out of the gym floor, and all four girls pointed into it and clapped for the Pokémon that could now be seen arranged into line like a school picture. Misty, Lily, Violet and Daisy dove into the pool, joining their Pokémon and posed. Almost immediately flashes went off throughout the arena as everyone took a photo to document the performance. When all four sisters had resurfaced, Misty called Gyarados over to lift them out of the pool. The girls then split up to go talk to their friends.

Misty and Daisy headed in the same direction, Misty to go talk to Brock, and Daisy to see Tracey, who was sitting between Brock and Professor Oak. Misty had to knock the hearts out of Brock's eyes as she approached him. He always had had a thing for the Sensational Sisters. "Good work girls, that was an excellent performance." Professor Oak complimented Misty and Daisy. "Yeah, well we like couldn't have done it without Misty and her Pokémon. So really it's like a good thing she needed something to do to stop her Pokémon from being lazy!"

"Yeah, I'm just happy all my Pokémon were able to have something to do, otherwise my stronger ones get bored as they don't get to battle very often. It was good having them train for the show!

"Of course, gym battles would be different for you. Forrest just got back from travelling, so dad is showing him the ropes. I guess he still struggles at times, which you wouldn't do." Brock joined in on the conversation.

"Plenty of trainers come to the gym, they're just all like, starter trainers. We keep joking to Misty that the battles would be like a lot more interesting if we took over again, but she won't let us do that."

"That's because she said you guys would be too easy," Tracey added.

"I guess you have to try and find the middle ground then, right?"

"Yeah exactly, my Pokémon all have to go easy. They don't enjoy it. I'm not allowed to let them get any stronger, I'm such a bad gym leader." Misty replied glumly.

"Oh no Misty, I'm sure you're a great gym leader!" Delia chimed in, smiling at Misty.

"Mrs. Ketchum, hi," Misty said with a bow. "I had no idea you were here."

"Oh I came up with Samuel, couldn't miss out on seeing one of Ash's oldest friends performing!"

"Thank you Mrs. Ketchum, you're too kind."

"Oh dear, it was a beautiful performance. You and your sisters did so well!" Delia beamed. Misty and Daisy's eyes got glossy. "To celebrate I insist on going out to dinner with you two girls and your sisters. My treat!"

"Wow really Mrs. Ketchum? That would be amazing!" Misty exclaimed.

"Can I bring Tracey?"

"I can pay for myself." Tracey said to Daisy's question.

"Of course you can bring whatever friends you want, it is a celebration after all."

"Thanks Mrs. Ketchum" Misty bowed again to Delia.

"Now girls, I think we've held you up long enough. We'll come by tomorrow to pick you up for dinner. Enjoy your celebrations. Bye bye now."

"Bye Professor!" Chanted Daisy, Tracey, Brock and Misty, the latter two bowing to the two older people as they weaved through what remained of the crowd towards the exit. "I have to find Sakura, Duplica and Casey to see if they want to come to dinner." Misty said to Brock.

"I'll come too," he replied, uncomfortably glancing at Daisy and Tracey who seemed to have forgotten they were in the middle of the crowded gym.

"Sure thing. I just hope they waited back for me."

Misty and Brock left the love locked couple in search of their friends.


	3. Chapter 2: Planning for some fresh air

**Summer Isles**

_Chapter 2: Planning for some fresh air_

**Indigo Plateau**

Gary waited outside the office impatiently. He tapped his feet nervously as he sat in the reception area of the Pokémon league, and drummed his fingers on his knees. He caught himself doing these things and consciously made an effort to stop. '_Dora always hated my nervous tendencies,_' he thought to himself with a smile.

Gary was visiting the Elite Four and Champion to submit his proposal, and the wait to be let in to the meeting was killing him. Gary was a patient person, but he was nervous. He just wanted to know the result. He had handed his research in the day before, years worth of work all dedicated to a few sheets of paper. Now today, he was going to pose the idea of a battle competition.

To stop his fidgeting Gary went through his grandpa's briefcase, it had all the information he and his granddad had discovered about the islands. All the items that were to be found on them, and what types they suited. He read over some of the files again. He needed to relax, and focus on what he was here for. '_How will they agree to it if I'm just sweating at the thought of it. They'll never think I'm capable of hosting it. What if they think I'm so bad that they send someone else out to my island to watch over it? What if they don't like the idea at all? I thought I'd finally found a balance between research and training; finally a way to get my Pokémon involved and active again. They were so excited to be told they would be battling again-_'

"Mr. Oak, they are ready for you now. Conference Room B." Gary was brought out of his thoughts. He slowly packed away the files in the briefcase, and took a deep breath before leaving the reception. Gary walked through the sliding door into a long corridor. From his previous visits to the League he knew that the conference rooms were on the second floor. Gary found an elevator and used his visitor's pass to gain access.

When he arrived on the second floor and stepped out of the elevator Gary's nerves hit again. He took a few more deep breaths. '_You can do this, if not for yourself, for Blastoise, for Umbreon, for Arcanine, for them._' Gary directed his thoughts to the Pokeballs on his belt. They were not allowed out while in the building, they were there only for moral support. Gary thought if he could just think of them when he presented his idea, he might just relax.

"Hi Gary! Welcome back, I trust you had a pleasant night? Please take a seat." Lance instructed Gary as he entered the conference room. Gary relaxed at the casual atmosphere in the room. He was happy to know this wasn't going to be too formal, Lance's welcome had shown that. If it had been more formal he would have had to make a conscious effort to address the members of the league appropriately. Knowing them all personally was a big downside when it came to formal introductions for Gary.

"Thank you, I had a quiet night of preparation. Thanks again for seeing me today."

"Now what do you have to show us? I gather it is something remarkable, as I heard from Professor Oak that he was involved, but unfortunately couldn't be here today."

"Yes, he's always busy that man!" Gary joked, wondering if the League knew that his grandfather was actually at a water show in Cerulean City. "I do however, have the files he made on his research."

"Research?" Koga asked. "I wasn't aware that you two had a project together."

"It wasn't a project, it was more like a discovery. May I?" Gary indicated the files he had laid out on the desk. Five heads nodded, and Gary handed over five identical binders to each person present.

"Amazing!" Gary heard Karen exclaim. The other Elite trainers kept any sentiment to themselves. Which Gary understood. The other three Elite members specialised in _psychic_, _poison_ and _fighting_ types, which had no reference in the recent findings.

Gary began to recount his discovery. "I found these islands while I was out with my Pokémon, islands which I had never known existed, and I have lived in the area for years. Some of the islands, two of my Pokémon, Blastoise and Umbreon, had strange reactions to. I returned later with Professor Oak to look at why this might be. After visiting all the islands, he found that they each had incorporated different items that energised and powered up certain Pokémon types." Gary paused in his story, thinking about how much effort it had been; and yet how little time it had taken to explain.

"As you can see from the files, nine islands were discovered. These islands had items that enhanced powers of _water, dark, bug, rock, grass, steel, fire, dragon and flying type_ Pokémon. What I would like to propose is a tournament for these islands." A collective gasp went around the room following Gary's final sentence. Who knew five people could hold so much air in their lungs.

"How could that _possibly_ work, all those items would give people with that type of Pokémon an advantage."

"That's the point of it. Think of the skill a trainer would possess to successfully win a battle against an advantage like that!"

"Well that would show a lot of trainer's skills, but then if Pokémon are going to be that strong we can't have a tournament where trainers are going to need a Centre everywhere to heal their Pokémon. I'm sure these islands are great, but from what you've given us I don't think it will work."

"We could limit the trainers who are allowed out to those islands..." Bruno suggested. "Say, they could only enter if they can prove they have what it takes."

"And how would we do that? Are you suggesting we have someone battle every single trainer who wants to enter, to see if they're good enough?" Karen laughed. "Yes we all have the time for that!"

This was going better than Gary had hoped. '_If all they're worried about is who gets to compete then it's a good sign. They like the idea,_' he thought. The only problem was that Gary had not thought about how tough it would actually be fighting an advantage the likes of which he was proposing. '_I really should have thought this through more before I came here.'_ Gary thought his troubles were over as Will spoke up.

"We could just allow trainers to compete if they can show that they have made it to a Pokémon League Tournament. So if a trainer can prove that they have won all eight badges from a region, that could be their entrance test."

There was a lull in the debate as everyone stopped to think about what Will had said. Lance was the first to speak up, "well say that works, there's still the issue of a Pokémon Centre. Even proven trainers will need to heal their Pokémon."

"The Sayda Laboratory has the equipment needed to heal Pokémon." Gary put in; he was finally beginning to think this would work.

"So the laboratory can accommodate _all_ the Pokémon? I was not aware Sayda Island was very big, are you sure there will be enough space for all the Pokémon that would come."

"Yes Gary, I mean we don't even know how many trainers will show up."

"The equipment the lab contains is portable. My- um, Professor Oak adapted some old machines to run on solar energy so that we could travel with them when we were studying in the field. One could be located on each of the islands, for trainers to heal as they battled on each one."

"Well we know who can enter, and the issue surrounding trainer Pokémon's health. But how will these trainers get around? Where will they sleep? What will they do between battles? The islands are out in the middle of nowhere, it's not like they can just camp out is it?"

'_Damn, another problem._' Gary thought, '_I should never have come here in the first place. Such basic things people need to do and I didn't think of it._' Gary's pause seemed to seal the fate that his tournament would not come to conception. '_I really should have thought it through._'

"What about a cruise ship?" Karen seemed to suggest out of nowhere. Everybody else in the room stared at her. Koga mocked her idea. "How would a cruise ship work? If all the trainers went to the same island at the same time there would be a queue to battle for days, weeks even!"

Karen thought for a second before answering. "Trainers could travel to Sayda, however they do. Pokémon, boat, what have you; and then from there they could jump onto the cruise ship. The cruise ship can be like the S.S. Anne, except instead of travelling from city to city it can circle around the islands." Everyone in the room was hooked on her words, no one more so than Gary. Karen seemed to have the final piece of the puzzle in his big scheme. '_This could actually be happening_,' he thought to himself, and could not help the grin from coming to his face at the thought.

"As it circles the islands trainers can either swim off to challenge an island, go back to Sayda to catch a ferry home, or just have fun on the cruise ship. It could be fully implemented like the S.S. Anne to host Pokémon battles so that people can train, as well as hosting activities that normally accompany a cruise. It'll be like a tournament holiday!" The rest of the room was still speechless. '_Even I want to go on this cruise around the islands!_' Gary thought, '_Karen sure has sold this idea to me; I hope everyone else thinks so..._'

Will was again the first to speak up. "Can I join the tournament? I can go in as the beta test! Assuming we have the resources to set up a cruise... Do we?"

'_This was the catch_.' Gary realised. It was all well and good to have these ideas, but it was having them actually work that was the catch.

"We will need a ship already in operation, there is no way we can build our own." Bruno put in.

'_This was it. It's impossible to move on from here. All the regions have their own ships, and all of them are used to cruise the seas. We can't just borrow one, they're all in use_.' Gary thought about the ships he had seen during his travels. He had been on board the S.S. Anne when he was a trainer in Kanto, and had seen the S.S. Sinnoh in Snowpoint City while he was at Lake Acuity.

Lance was talking now. "We can't use Anne, she's always booked out. I know the Tidal in Johto is always in high demand, so that one is out. Spiral gets a lot of use from the trainers in Sinnoh, and Unova is too far away to even think about borrowing the Royal, and even if it weren't there would be complications. The only other ship I know in operation is the Libra, but that's no cruise liner, it's more of a cargo ship."

"What's the S.S. Spiral?" Gary asked, he could not recall this particular vessel from when he had been in Sinnoh.

"It's the ship for taking trainers from Snowpoint City to Sinnoh's Battle Frontier."

"I thought that was the S.S. Sinnoh?"

"They upgraded a few years ago, they realised that the extra ice in the waters during winter couldn't be traversed in the Sinnoh. So they built a new ship with ice drills." Lance explained.

"So what happened to the Sinnoh?"

"I… actually don't know."

"Would it be possible to contact Cynthia to find out? If it's not in use anywhere that's going to be our ticket!"

"Yes, go do that!"

Karen, following orders left the room to phone Cynthia. There was silence following her departure. Gary realised this was it. If they got the ship the competition was a go, if they didn't, well, all was lost. He was crossing his fingers under the table for the former. Gary was confident that Cynthia would at least lend them the ship. He had done a lot with her when he was over in Sinnoh. '_If she remembers..._' He thought worriedly. He kept his fingers crossed, '_a little luck never hurt anyone_.'

Karen walked back into the room. Everybody waited patiently to hear what the news was going to be. Gary could feel the tension building with each step Karen took towards her seat. "We can have the Sinnoh!" A collective breath was released from the other five at the table. "The only catch is that we have to pick it up. Alder and the others are over for an exhibition; he's probably still trying to get in Cynthia's good books. That guy can't take no for an answer."

"If all we have to do is fetch the ship, easy! Koga and I can fly over with Surge and we'll be able to sail back!"

"It's settled then. Bruno, Koga, you're relieved of your duties for the week to organise this. Karen, you can help Gary source out some island leaders. Will, when everything is set up, I'll send you out for a tour and to report back on how it's all looking. Dismissed!"

The Elite's all rose from the table and abruptly left the room to start on their tasks for the competition. Lance started clearing up the papers left on the table. "Have you got yourself a doctor organised? Competing Pokémon will need to be checked up regularly. I hope you're ready for this. Until next time Gary."

_'Shit_!' Gary had not even thought about getting a doctor. Actually, he had realised a lot today that he had not even thought about. He just hoped he would be able to pull this off. He left the room and closed the door behind him. Gary needed to call his grandfather to tell him the news.

* * *

**Cerulean Cape**

The celebratory dinner for the Sensational Sisters of Cerulean Gym was held at one of Misty's favourite restaurant's at Cerulean Cape. Present were the four Waterflower sisters, Delia and Professor Oak, Brock, Duplica, Casey and Tracey. Delia, thinking as only a mother can, had booked the function room at the restaurant for them. After their performance last night, the media had been ringing the gym all morning to try and get an interview with all four Sensational Sisters. Having not been granted their wishes, many of them were in the crowded restaurant, waiting to get their scoop.

"So Misty, how does it feel to be famous like your sisters now?" Casey asked.

"And isn't life as a performer great!" Duplica added.

"I don't think I'm that famous yet." Misty blushed, "and performing was fun, but I wish it could make trainers see that I'm not just for starters to battle."

"Like Misty, you just wait! When you're on like all the magazine covers with us tomorrow you'll like love it!" Lily exclaimed.

"Yeah and like, think of all the boys who'll see us and come to ask us out! You could finally come to the Cape proper!" Violet added teasingly.

"More importantly for you Misty," Daisy glared at her other two sisters, before turning back to her youngest sister with a warm smile. "As long as you talk in the interviews tomorrow about being a gym leader and your battles, you might get a lot of good challengers. Like I'm sure once you're in the spotlight you can get your message out there" Tracey gave Daisy a soft peck on the cheek for her encouraging words.

"Thanks Dais, you always know what to say." Misty said to her sister quietly. Then with more enthusiasm she exclaimed, "I'll have to prepare my Pokémon for lots of battles this week!"

With Misty's mood properly lifted the dinner really began. Their main course was brought out into the centre of the table, and with it small talk broke out. Brock was talking to Professor Oak and Tracey about his study. Both of whom were very interested to hear about it. Tracey was asking if at some point he would be able to sketch Brock while he was working sometime, and Professor Oak was offering him a one-off stint at the lab so he could have some fieldwork under his belt too. Brock was excited at the opportunities and agreed to both requests wholeheartedly.

Daisy, Violet, Lily and Delia were all talking about shopping and the beach. Delia was lightly scolding the girls for the amount of money they blew on clothes just for one date; and then some more for their lack of concern about proper skin care. "But like Delia, we're all so pale, we need to get some colour on our skin!" Lily whined, trying to justify her and her sisters' lack of sun block. "And like we can't wear the same dress for two dates, that's so tacky." Violet whined.

"Not when it's like a different guy each time you're wearing the dress Vi!" Daisy teased her sister. Violets cheeks flushed and Lily, Delia and Daisy all burst out laughing.

Misty, Casey and Duplica had been listening with interest to the conversations around them before starting to chat among themselves. First Casey started talking about the Electabuzz and how, with Giorgio, she had managed to get tickets to all of their Johto and Kanto games. Duplica talked about how she had been travelling with her show and run into lots of cute guys. "Hey Misty," Duplica added to the end of her tale, "what about you? What cute guys have you been seeing?" Casey and Duplica stared intently at Misty, waiting for an answer.

"There haven't been any guys. Didn't you hear my sisters earlier?" Misty said to the girls. "I haven't even been to the Cape here for a sunset, the first date." Misty said more quietly.

"Why not?" Duplica asked, "not cute enough?"

"Not good enough more like." Casey answered for Misty. "You've seen her battle; and the last time I saw her battle Giorgio for a date, she beat him easily!"

"You really battle all the guys that ask you on a date?" Duplica asked.

"Uh, yeah," Misty said sounding unsure. "What else am I supposed to do?"

Misty saw Duplica and Casey exchanging exasperated looks with each other before turning back to her. "What's wrong with just saying yes!" Both girls shouted together. Silence followed the outburst, and Misty saw that everyone's eyes were on her. Misty felt her cheeks heat up. She looked down at her plate and began chewing on a bread roll. She did not look up again until she felt her cheeks reach their normal temperature.

When she did look up again, Misty was glad to see that all attention was off of her, with everyone resuming his or her previous conversations. "At least we're all getting plenty of vitamin D," Misty could hear Daisy saying to Delia. On the other side of the table she could hear Professor Oak talking to Brock. "If you could come to the lab this weekend Gary should be there too, I'm sure he'd love to see you at work for his latest project." Misty saw Duplica and Casey however were still looking at her expectantly. "Well?"

"Well," Misty started, "after all those lame trainers challenging me I just wanted a decent battle. Maybe I want a boyfriend who can give me a good battle to keep me in shape." Misty's statement had surprised herself, she actually didn't know why she didn't simply say yes. Maybe, under pressure from her friends, she had found the truth at last. "You need to get out of that gym Mist." Casey nodded her agreement. "If you travelled around you'd find lots of challenging guys, especially gym leaders. There are some really cute gym leaders out there you know?" Duplica winked at Misty. Casey started bouncing in her chair. "Who? Who?"

"Casey you have a boyfriend!" Misty laughed at her friend.

"Doesn't mean I can't look." Casey pouted.

"Well _Casey_," Duplica emphasised the name. "Some really cute gym leaders are Brawly, Volkner, Brycen, Roark, Faulkner and Morty."

"Don't forget there are those really hot coordinators Drew and Kenny." Casey added.

"Casey!" Misty scolded, "they both have girlfriends."

"How many times do I have to tell you I'm only looking?" Casey pleaded. "Plus, if you're into older guys there are always Nando, Robert and Wallace too!" All three girls burst out laughing.

"If you're only looking you might as well add Lance, Steven Stone and Gary Oak to that list!" Duplica gasped to Casey between fits of giggles.

Misty stopped laughing, "really, Gary Oak!" She exclaimed. Duplica and Casey laughed at her now.

"Really Misty, haven't you _seen_ him?" Duplica asked.

"He's so dreamy!" Casey added on fanning her face with her hand.

"I never really noticed, I haven't seen him in years, and when I did then we hated each other!"

"How could you hate him?"

"He was Gary Oak!" Misty replied indignantly.

"That's why you should love him!" Misty blushed.

"I'm not going to love anyone!" She shouted. Misty then noticed that the room had gone quiet again. '_Did they hear me?_' She thought, feeling embarrassed at the thought, making her blush deeper.

"Who won't you love?" Asked Lily.

"Nobody-"

"Oh we were just talking about cute guys and when-"

"Wow it's late, I think we should all call it a night!" Misty interrupted a giggling Duplica before turning an even deeper shade of red.

"Oh my!" Delia exclaimed. "You're right Misty, and you girls need to be up early for your interview!" Misty thanked Arceus in her head that Mrs. Ketchum had saved her from probing questions, and slipped her jacket on to leave. Duplica and Casey joined her giggling. "That was so embarrassing," Misty said as they walked towards the exit. "Did you not know that Professor Oak is Gary's granddad?"

"Wow really? I need to do some research!"

"Casey!" Both Misty and Duplica shouted together.

The three girls climbed into the back of Professor Oak's jeep, while Daisy drove Tracey, Violet, Lily and Brock back to the gym in her car. Delia joined them in the passenger seat, and they headed for the Cerulean Hotel to drop off Casey and Duplica.

At the gym, the rest of the group bid farewell to Delia and Professor Oak. "I'll see you on Saturday Brock for some work, and I'll see you Tracey when you get back."

"Look after yourselves girls." Delia called to the four sisters, hugging them each in turn. They waved as Professor Oak pulled away from the gym in his jeep, with Delia waving back from the passenger seat. Once the car was out of sight the six of them headed into the gym. Daisy led Tracey in one direction to her room, while Lily and Violet headed off in another to their rooms. Brock and Misty trudged up the stairs. Misty showed Brock to the guest room before heading to her own room. Once there she kicked off her shoes and jumped onto her bed.

Lying on her stomach, Misty stared out the window into the night. She couldn't believe Duplica and Casey had been talking about Gary that way with Professor Oak so close to them. It was embarrassing. '_Imagine if he had heard'_, she thought. She could not take them seriously talking about Gary like that though. Misty mostly knew about him from reading _Water Week_, which she subscribed to, for which he occasionally wrote articles about _water_ Pokémon. Though from gossip magazines she knew he had a pretty long-term girlfriend. '_That Casey_,' Misty thought, '_what's the point of her even having a boyfriend? I should have agreed to a date with Giorgio just to save him from her_!' Misty couldn't believe how boy crazy her younger friend was, '_but at least she has experience_' Misty thought glumly. All in all though, she had enjoyed the time she had spent with her friends tonight, she really needed to get out of the gym more often.

Misty fell asleep with her thoughts and the curtains still open, and in the morning she rose with the sun to get ready for her interviews. Misty left her room for an early breakfast, she didn't even attempt to get dressed or put makeup on in any way. Her sisters would take over full reign of her appearance once they were up. They would want everything to be perfect for the interview, after all, the news was going to be broadcast all over Kanto and Johto, with the chance of some screen time across other regions. After Saturday night's successful show, the next one was going to be advertised to the whole country. They needed this interview to be successful, to get good coverage, so that everyone would want to see Cerulean's Sensational Sisters.

* * *

**Pallet Town**

Gary arrived at his granddad's lab early on Friday morning. The train from the Indigo Plateau had run overnight to Viridian City, and from there he had walked in the early hours of the morning south to Pallet. Gary let himself onto the lab's estate and made his way to the back door, which would let him into the lab directly. He did not want to go through the house and wake his grandfather at this early hour.

Gary had only come at his grandfather's request because he had been told that a training Pokémon doctor was going to be visiting the lab. Gary wanted to make contact with the doctor. Pokémon doctors were rare and in high demand. By meeting the doctor before they graduated Gary hoped he would be able to enlist the aid of the doctor once he was qualified. Gary had told his grandfather about the league saying that if he wanted to have a competition, all leaders Pokémon would need a monthly check up by a doctor throughout the competing season. At the news Gary's face had fallen, now he knew why his grandfather's had not.

Gary glanced at the clock, 5:20am, in ten minutes he would be able to call Dora. While Gary was away this weekend, her and Crystal were in charge of the workers who were putting in battlefields on each of the islands. Gary was just hoping the builders were morally conscious enough to not ruin the islands with their building. They were all unique, which Gary loved, he didn't want that ruined with careless installations. It had been hard for Gary to get his Pokémon away from their preferred islands, and he was sure that in time his Pokémon would spend their days on the separate islands, with him left to watch over them all.

Gary had already stationed some of his Pokémon on their type respective islands. Gary's Arcanine who he often walked with at night for his brilliant glowing fur was now at the Fire Isle. Gary had actually tried to bring Arcanine with him to the lab today, but his old friend was stubborn. Gary's Krabby was on the Water Isle, much to the jealousy of his Blastoise. Just as his Houndoom was over on the Dark Isle. Gary's Dodrio was running around the Flying Isle, his Skarmory nestled on Steel Isle, his Scizor on the Bug Isle, and his Golem on the Rock Isle.

Gary moved to the centre of the lab where the vidphone was located. As he rang up Sayda Lab he could imagine the ringtone going off. '_Ring-ring ring-ring! Phone call! Phone call_!' Dora's face appeared on the screen. "Oh hi Gary, didn't expect to see you this early. I thought I'd get to sleep in before heading out!"

"Like Crystal would have let you sleep that long!" Gary teased her, plastering a smirk on his face. "Speak of the devil." Dora muttered quietly and Gary chuckled.

"I am not the devil!" Crystal protested loudly.

"You are now," Dora cringed, "morning voice babe."

"Sorry."

"You have to behave now Crystal, I won't be there to defend you now if your sister were to kill you!" With a sly wink from Gary, Dora acted on cue to engulf Crystal in a massive Beartic hug. Crystal screamed. "You guys are so mean to me when you're away!" She whined. Gary and Dora responded by laughing. "Come on Crystal you know you're my top girl!"

"You mean I'm not your favourite girl?" Daisy Oak teased as she strutted into the lab. "I guess my baby brother is finally growing up." Daisy joined Gary in front of the vidphone, "although isn't she a little young for you?" She continued, muttering to Gary. Crystal blushed, obviously having heard Gary's sister. She left the phone, and Dora returned in her place.

"Hi Daisy, how are you?"

"Oh fabulous, thanks for asking! I trust you're well? And you need to train your sister up, or how is she going to cope when she gets a boyfriend?"

"Yeah I'm great, but it should still be a while before she gets a boyfriend. I mean, it's not like many boys, or people even, her age come to visit. Actually it's not like people of any age come to visit at all for that matter."

"Yeah but don't worry, we'll find you a man one day too Dora!" Dora simply laughed at Daisy's antics. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to steal my brother away for debriefing before our special guest arrives."

"Well then it was good to see you again Daisy, and I'll see you again in a few days Gary!"

With a soft click the line was broken. "So what's this debriefing about?"

"Well, while you've been holed up at the Plateau helping Karen look for leaders, a lot has been going on. For instance, the Sinnoh is now docked in Vermillion for repairs, some furnishing and decorating. When Cynthia found out you were the one who wanted the ship she said we could have it. So when you're finished here you'll need to head over there and oversee that, as now they're also looking at renaming it."

"Great, got it."

"Gramps ran into this guy coming today in Cerulean. He studied at Celadon University, and has been travelling through a few regions as well. Apparently he also spent some time working with Professor Ivy in the Orange Islands."

"He has a lot of life experience then, that's a good thing."

"We asked him if we could get a reference from Ivy for him, but he absolutely refused it. Gramps has said that the work is confirmed though."

"Well if Gramps is happy with it, I am too. Where are he and Tracey anyway?"

"Gramps should be finishing up his breakfast now-"

"-Ah breakfast that sounds good!"

"-and Tracey is in Pewter City to pick up our guest." It took Daisy a moment to realise what her brother had said. "You haven't had breakfast? 'Ceus Gary, what am I going to do with you? Come on, we need to get some food in your system, you have a big day ahead of you."

Tracey arrived with Brock at the Oak estate early in the afternoon. Tracey led Brock to the door of the lab and knocked. Professor Oak was the one to answer. "Ahh, Tracey, Brock, it's good to see you both again. I trust your journey was pleasant?"

"It was fairly uneventful, although we might have spent more time in the Viridian Forest if it weren't for Marill's navigation."

"Well lucky for us that you have Marill. Come on in, Gary's looking forward to seeing you."

Gary was playing solitaire on his laptop when his grandfather led Brock and Tracey over to him. He stood up to greet Tracey with a handshake and a clap on the back. Professor Oak introduced Brock to him. "Gary, this is Brock. You may recognise him as one of Ash's old friends."

Recognition glinted in Gary's eyes. "Of course, Brock! Tracey how come you didn't tell me it was _breeder_ Brock coming over?" Gary winked at Tracey who smirked in return at the nickname. "So you're going to be a doctor now are you, what made you decide to chase that?"

"It was on a boat back from the Lily of the Valley Conference. A whole lot of baby Pokémon got sick. There wasn't a Nurse Joy on board, and when we called for one she was still going to be a couple of hours away. I took it upon myself to look after them. When Nurse Joy arrived she complimented my work and suggested it. I had never even thought of doing anything beyond breeding; but it turns out my breeding experience has really helped in my studies."

"Of course, breeding is a major component of many professions. Even gramps has worked in breeding in the past."

"And don't forget Professor Oak has to work with breeders to give trainers their first Pokémon!"

"Now, now boys. Let's get back to the real reason we're here today." Professor Oak cut across Tracey.

"Brock," Gary addressed him. "Do you have anything lined up for after your studies?"

"I haven't really thought about anything quite yet. I've been trying to focus on my exams in a couple of weeks."

"Of course you would be; but the reason I ask is because I have a position for a Pokémon doctor, and you are very highly recommended-"

"-I am?"

"You didn't know? When gramps told me he had someone in mind when I told him I needed a doctor, I asked him to give me some more information. You have great references, you definitely made a lot of good impressions during your travels."

"I never knew. But the position, you have one for me?"

"I do, but we can talk more about that tomorrow, and of course you'll be doing a demonstration for us! With what's left of the day you can just relax. Let your Pokémon out and have fun!"

* * *

**Cerulean Gym**

Misty finished up her laps in the pool with her Pokémon. She grabbed a towel and dried herself enough to put her jacket on. Misty then made her way to the diving board, from where she instructed her Pokémon for the rest of their training session. Misty had her Pokémon race, dive, perform many of their special attacks, and dance around the pool before she called them off to play for a while.

Daisy had been right about their interview sending trainers to the gym for a battle. Monday afternoon she had battled five times in a row and given out three deserving badges. Then on Tuesday she had taken a massive eighteen challengers, half of which received badges. Her sisters had actually taken turns between refereeing, taking her Pokémon to the centre for check ups, and having some time off. Wednesday had dropped back to five trainers winning good badges, Thursday saw four non-deserving badges given out, and on Friday Misty had had enough and given out no badges.

The interview had actually been a success, but it was short-lived. It was Saturday now, and she had spent the day training with her Pokémon. Misty had finally allowed herself to relax; although she had no decent challengers the day before, she had been in anticipation. It was too late in the day now to go fishing, and both Casey and Duplica had now left Cerulean. Misty's usual next move was to call Brock or Tracey, but she knew they were both busy at Professor Oak's lab this weekend. '_If only I had been invited too_' she thought glumly. Misty knew she probably would have been invited, but everybody had thought challengers and subsequent gym battles would overrun her. How wrong they were.

Misty recalled her Pokémon to their balls for the short trip to the aquarium. "Lily should be by later to feed you, I'll leave a note for her on the fridge so she remembers." Misty told her Pokémon through the glass. Misty then made her way to her room, grabbed her towel from its hook on the back of her door and made her way to the bathroom. She turned the faucet on and let the water heat up. She tested out the heat of the water with her hand, and then, on finding it acceptable, took off her jacket and stepped in. Misty let the pressure of the water massage her shoulders for a while before she took off her swimsuit and rinsed it out. She hung her swimsuit over the shower door and set about washing her hair.

Misty's long ginger locks smelt like strawberries as she toweled her hair dry in the bathroom. She wrapped her towel around herself and walked back to her room. Misty stood in front of her wardrobe. '_What did she want to put on? What did she want to do tonight_?' Misty pulled out a double-layered white tunic and some knee length leggings, she was going out. She was not going to stay home _this _Saturday night. Misty stood in front of the mirror in her outfit. She brushed her fringe to the side, swiped some blush across her cheeks and outlined her eyes with a pencil. She applied a dark coat of lipstick and then chucked on a pair of ankle boots. _'Next decision_,' she thought admiring her reflection, 'where _to go_?'

Misty smiled to herself as she walked through Cerulean. She had taken notice of the double takes that people, men, had taken as she had made her way past them. Yes, Misty was still a tomboy, but that didn't mean she couldn't take pride in her appearance, and she had never been one to shy away from exposing her body. She guessed that came from being surrounded by water growing up, and being raised dressed in a swimsuit. Misty was making her way to Cerulean Cape. She planned to go to the ice cream parlour, and then the beach. It was a lovely night, why couldn't she enjoy it too? She didn't need a boy to bring her to the Cape; she could go on her own.

Misty sat halfway down the beach near the rock pools and licked at her strawberry ice cream. She sat away from the couples that scattered the main causeway of the beach; the sheer number of people on a date tonight disturbed her. _'Is everyone in a relationship?_' Misty pulled herself together and stared out into the indigo night. If the moon hadn't been so bright, she doubted she would have been able to distinguish the sky from the ocean on the horizon. The glistening waves reflected the waxing moon and the starlit sky with a mystic beauty. She could understand why the location was so popular; it was very romantic.

Misty didn't know how long she had been sat on the beach. When she made her way back up it though, she was very aware of how deserted it was compared to when she had arrived. Misty felt light, relaxed. The fresh air of Cerulean Cape seemed to have lifted a weight off of her shoulders that she had not even known was there. '_I need to get out of the gym more often_' Misty thought to herself. She made her way back to the gym very slowly, enjoying the feel of the cool air kissing her skin.

When she reached the gym, Misty's late night walk caught up with her. She suddenly felt exhausted. She stopped by the bathroom on the way to her room to wash her makeup off. Once clean, Misty stumbled to her bedroom where she crawled under the covers of her bed without so much as kicking her boots off. Misty fell asleep almost as soon as her soft cheeks hit her fluffy pillows.

Misty woke up to sunlight streaming through the window, with Pidgey cooing and Spearow screeching outside. She rationalised that the walk last night had done her good. Misty felt relaxed and happy. '_I really do need to dedicate more time to myself._' She stretched out on her bed and lay there a while, basking in the morning sun. With her eyes closed and her mind at peace, Misty could quite happily have lain like that for hours, had her bladder not had other plans.

As she was up, Misty decided she might as well get something to eat. She put a piece of bread in the grill to toast while she looked for what to have on it. Searching the pantry she found some _kelpsy_ jam and put it on the bench. She sprinkled some oil over her now toasting bread and then poured herself a glass of _moomoo milk. _She took her breakfast, and a packet of sugar biscuits up to her room to eat.

Elsewhere in the house, Misty could hear the other residents moving about. She left her room with the now half empty packet of biscuits and jar of jam. Her sisters were in the kitchen when she arrived, Lily cooking something on the stove while Daisy and Violet watched from the breakfast bar. The three had been talking, but stopped abruptly once they saw Misty.

"What happened?" Misty asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Well, we just like can't believe you had a date and didn't tell us about it!" Lily replied

"A da-?"

"Especially since you got blown off and didn't even call to let us know!" Violet added

"You know we would have been here to comfort you if you like, needed it. You are our like, baby sister after all. That's what we're here for." Daisy assured.

"What?" Misty was beyond confused. "I didn't have a date last night!"

"Then what were you like doing all dressed up at the Cape last night?" Violet asked.

"I went out for some fresh air and an ice cream. Wait! How did you know I was even at the Cape last night?"

"Cerulean Times like duh." Violet answered.

"Yeah Misty, you're like front page news." As she spoke Daisy showed Misty the weekend newspaper, with the gossip section pulled out. Misty saw that the whole front page was a picture of her on the rocks at the cape with the caption ~_Cerulean Sister Cast Aside!_~.

"What does it say?" Misty asked, not quite sure if she wanted to hear the answer or not.

"Quite a lot actually, 'cause you like, never give them a chance to write about you."

"Tell me exactly!"

Daisy continued, "well it says you must have finally found a guy worthy of going out with you-"

"Yeah, 'cause like, apparently the reason you never go on dates is because you're picky, not because nobody asks you!"

"People do so ask me!" Misty protested.

"Lily leave it! Then it talks about you being wrong about the guy because he never showed up."

"There was never anyone to show up!"

"Yeah we like know."

"Well like, now we do anyway."

"Like, so yeah," Daisy continued. "They drew that out for a while because it's the only story they've ever had on you. They just talked on and on about how Cerulean's youngest flower was blooming, blah, blah, blah. Apparently there's going to be an exclusive tomorrow about your life at the gym."

"I don't have a life at the gym. Its just battling, which everyone knows about, and it's not like they're exciting battles either."

"That's for sure!"

"Then we won't need to read tomorrow's paper!"

"Yeah right!" Misty said sarcastically. "Violet, you and Lil are the biggest gossips in the region. You'll be reading it as soon as it lands outside."

"Don't worry Mist, you're just this weekend's hot topic. It'll blow over."

"I hope so."

* * *

**AN****: **I'm so sorry it's been a while. But to anyone who is actually legit interested in this story have no fear: I plan to finish this story for myself, so it's really no more effort to upload it on here - however long that takes. Thank you for reading and keeping with it, I hope you're enjoying it so far.


End file.
